It has never been more important to articulate the wonder and enchantment of the Christian message. Yet the traditional approaches of apologetics are often outmoded in an age of profound disenchantment and distraction, unable to meet this pressing need. This winsome apologetics book for a new generation makes the case that Christianity offers a compelling explanatory framework for making sense of our world. Pastor and writer Gavin Ortlund believes it is essential to appeal not only to the mind but also to the heart and the imagination as we articulate the beauty of the gospel. Why God Makes Sense in a World That Doesn't reimagines four classical theistic arguments--cosmological, teleological, moral, and Christological--making a cumulative case for God as the best framework for understanding the storied nature of reality. The book suggests that Christian theism can explain such things as the elegance of math, the beauty of music, and the value of love. It is suitable for use in classes yet accessibly written, making it a perfect resource for churches and small groups.

We live in an age of skepticism. Our society places such faith in empirical reason, historical progress, and heartfelt emotion that it’s easy to wonder: Why should anyone believe in Christianity? What role can faith and religion play in our modern lives? In this thoughtful and inspiring new book, pastor and New York Times bestselling author Timothy Keller invites skeptics to consider that Christianity is more relevant now than ever. As human beings, we cannot live without meaning, satisfaction, freedom, identity, justice, and hope. Christianity provides us with unsurpassed resources to meet these needs. Written for both the ardent believer and the skeptic, Making Sense of God shines a light on the profound value and importance of Christianity in our lives.

The hard work required to make God real, how it changes the people who do it, and why it helps explain the enduring power of faith How do gods and spirits come to feel vividly real to people—as if they were standing right next to them? Humans tend to see supernatural agents everywhere, as the cognitive science of religion has shown. But it isn’t easy to maintain a sense that there are invisible spirits who care about you. In How God Becomes Real, acclaimed anthropologist and scholar of religion T. M. Luhrmann argues that people must work incredibly hard to make gods real and that this effort—by changing the people who do it and giving them the benefits they seek from invisible others—helps to explain the enduring power of faith. Drawing on ethnographic studies of evangelical Christians, pagans, magicians, Zoroastrians, Black Catholics, Santeria initiates, and newly orthodox Jews, Luhrmann notes that none of these people behave as if gods and spirits are simply there. Rather, these worshippers make strenuous efforts to create a world in which invisible others matter and can become intensely present and real. The faithful accomplish this through detailed stories, absorption, the cultivation of inner senses, belief in a porous mind, strong sensory experiences, prayer, and other practices. Along the way, Luhrmann shows why faith is harder than belief, why prayer is a metacognitive activity like therapy, why becoming religious is like getting engrossed in a book, and much more. A fascinating account of why religious practices are more powerful than religious beliefs, How God Becomes Real suggests that faith is resilient not because it provides intuitions about gods and spirits—but because it changes the faithful in profound ways.

There are millions of religions on Earth, because of this you may find yourself wondering which one is right; what is the so-called "right" path to take and how do you even begin to find it if there is one? We live in a vast universe of possibilities with never ending choices, is it possible that there could be only one right way to enlightenment in this world? Even with the understanding of one God and one humanity how is it that there are so many different ideas of what the eternal plan for us all is that so many people believe was predestined since the beginning of time? Does God actually speak to anyone, or is the person who believes he or she hears God's voice special in some indescribable and unique way that allows some otherworldly divine voice to come through to those people alone as the rest of humanity sits in an unending clueless silence? Would a God that has an unchanging, unconditional and steadfast love for his creations truly order their annihilation and destruction, essentially sentencing his creations to an eternal torment simply because they refused to trust another man's word on the existence of God to begin with? Does God intervene in the lives of people simply because they pray to him, but then turn a deaf ear towards the countless starving children who silently die every single day? Does this all-powerful creator of the universe really need your money; or is this just man's corrupted way to prosper at the hands of hard working believers? Finally, does God love all of creation or just the select few who somehow found the only one true path leading to him in the midst of all the wrong ones? If so, then why would he create anyone who would not eventually find the one true path in the first place? What is the point? Is this life nothing more than a test? These are just a few of the questions I want to address, but before we get into all of that I would like to share a little about my life so you get to know who I am and allow you to gain some insight into how this all began.

A guide to Christian philosophy that engages with the biblical story As human beings, we all qualify as philosophers, and Paul Copan contends that we take a position of trust (faith) shaped by philosophical stances but also personal heart commitments (worldviews). In this thoroughly revised and expanded second edition of Loving Wisdom, Copan explores philosophy of religion from a distinctively evangelical Christian perspective—biblically grounded, informed by apologetics, and engaging with questions about universal human longings. Copan presents a distinctively and deliberately biblical philosophy of religion in Loving Wisdom,addressing a wide range of topics and questions as they arise in the metanarrative of scripture. He acknowledges the difficulties, mystery, and disagreements in “religion,” while attempting to show how the Christian faith does a much more adequate job of responding to a wide range of challenges as well as addressing our deepest human yearnings. With discussion questions for each chapter and an accessible approach, Loving Wisdom is ideal for the classroom or small groups.

Looks at the Gospels and examines what Christ requires of his followers in a redemptive-historical context. New and seasoned believers will see God's loving plan for their ultimate satisfaction. Now in paperback.

It can no longer be assumed that most people--or even most Christians--have a basic understanding of the Bible. Many don't know the difference between the Old and New Testament, and even the more well-known biblical figures are often misunderstood. It is getting harder to talk about Jesus accurately and compellingly because listeners have no proper context with which to understand God's story of redemption. In this basic introduction to faith, D. A. Carson takes seekers, new Christians, and small groups through the big story of Scripture. He helps readers to know what they believe and why they believe it. The companion leader's guide helps evangelistic study groups, small groups, and Sunday school classes make the best use of this book in group settings.